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I would like to understand the major pain points that Hawaiian Airlines faces from a technology standpoint. Please include an analysis of the major technology applications that the client is currently using.
Hello, and thanks for your question asking what are the major pain points that Hawaiian Airlines faces from a technology standpoint. I have found that the biggest problems are those that are facing customers when they attempt to use the company's online booking system. Below you will find a deep dive into my research, along with all the details as to how I came to this conclusion.
OVERVIEW
Hawaiian airlines is a Honolulu based airline which is the largest in Hawaii. When searching for information on where the company stands from a technology standpoint I was inundated with sources which put Hawaiian Airlines in a negative light. Many customers have experienced issues with a range of technological issues with the company, mainly their dysfunctional website. The best source I found to describe this was an article published by Crankyflier. To begin with I have discussed information I have found on advances the airline has made in their use of technology, and have followed this with a section which describes the main issues people experience with their technology.
CURRENT DIRECTIONS IN TECH
Hawaiian Airlines made a deal with Sabre Airline Solutions, meaning that Sabre Airline Solutions will from now on be serving Hawaiian Airlines' maintenance and engineering needs through their Maintenix system from Mxi Technologies. The technology will give the airline the ability to view maintenance and materials information throughout the organisation, which will improve the its working efficiency.
In addition to this the company have introduced state-of-the-art, self-service check-in terminals. The aim of this adoption of technology is to improve speed of check in and customer convenience.
The Hawaiian Airlines’ flight planning system has been enhanced through the use of NAVBLUE industry leading technology. The technology will foster increased flight plan accuracy, and therefore reduce operating costs for the airline.
Finally, a few months ago the Wall Street Journal announced that Hawaiian Airlines and FedEx Corp. are teaming up to trying novel airborne technologies. These technologies may have the impact of cutting costs, reducing the weight and exponentially increasing the capacity of communication systems connecting aircraft with satellites.
MAJOR PAIN POINTS IN TECH
Although in recent years Hawaiian airlines have made a number of strategic moves to improve their technology offerings, evidence shows that they still have a lot of major pain points in this region. For example its increased use of advanced tech has its downsides. As a result, when the company has tech issues it takes them much longer to get back up and running again. This has become a reoccurring issue which is frustrating customers.
Another major issue customers are having frequent problems is, is that when these delays occur there is a lack of a system in place to re-book passengers on alternative airlines. This is an issue which may be universal to many airlines, but Hawaiian Airlines have been identified as one of them.
Crankyflier has made a comprehensive list of issues that customers are having with the airline, most of them are related to technology issues. To being with, Hawaiian Airlines charges travel agents far more for booking through their own systems rather than through their website. As a result travel agents are booking through the website and selecting the option for them to fill their name in on the booking system as the "travel arranger". The issue is that the booking often is not able to be completed because the system won't allow the passengers to make a payment, as their names do not match that of the travel agent. Another issue people are having with the online reservation system is that while you can select speciality meals (e.g. vegan) on the site, they don't in fact exist. There have been more major issues with their online booking system reported, for example discrepancies in seat numbers depending where you look, and the complete inability to change seats. An issue linked with this seat reservation problem is that many customers have reported selecting specific seats when booking online, only to find that they have been moved by the time they come to board.
Finally, I have found information on several review sites which confirms that a majority of passengers are unhappy with how the company's website works. From people having trouble completing a booking, to their calendars showing incorrect dates, inconsistent information and a lack of notifications when the airline makes changes for any reason.
CONCLUSION
Overall Hawaiian Airlines are a company who seem to be known for their failures technology-wise. While currently as well as in the past the company has attempted to improve its technology adoption in order solve problems, customers are still having big issues with the booking system on their website, as well as having to wait extended periods in the case that their system goes down.
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